Raj Shukla

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Archive data: Person was Research Fellow at IDSA from June 2009 to April 2010

Joined IDSA
June 2009
Expertise
Counter-Terrorism, Internal Security, National Security, Nuclear Warfighting and Civil – Military Relations
Education
MSc in Defence Studies, M Sc ( Tech ) Weapon Systems
Current Project
India as a Modern Nation State and Weaknesses in its National Security Construct
Background
Commissioned into the Regiment of Artillery in 1982, the officer commanded a Medium Regiment as part of a Mountain Division in the Eastern Theatre and subsequently as part of a Strike Corps in the Western Theatre. Amongst other tenures, the officer has served along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, the watershed in Sikkim and as part of various mechanized formations. A qualified aviator he has also done a stint in flying along the borders in Sikkim and in the North – East. He has tenated several staff appointments, to include tenures as General Staff Officer, Grade I in an Infantry Division and as a Director in the Directorate General of Military Operations at Army Headquarters. The officer has also tenated instructional appointments in the School of Artillery and the Indian Military Training Team in Bhutan. An alumnus of Defence Services Staff College Wellington, he has attended the Higher Defence Managemaent Course in the College of Defence Management, Secunderabad as also participated in seminars on WMD / Nuclear Terrorism, Stability Operations, OOTW and Disaster Management in Hawaii ( USA ), Tokyo and Bangkok.
Publications

Research Fellow
Email:-rshukla[at]idsa[dot]in
Phone:-+91 11 2671 7983

Publication

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Nuclear Terrorism: Inevitable But Preventable?

The phenomenon of nuclear terrorism has been the subject of intense debate as also much hype. This article seeks to cut through the hype and examine the real portents of the threat in terms of event possibilities. In doing so, it calls for sobriety and balance in discussion, emphasizes the need to guard against ignoring numerous scientific facts and real difficulties along the way, and cautions against embracing unduly alarmist overtones.

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Use of Force: Possibilities in the Indo-Pak Context

My presentation on, “ Use of Force - Possibilities in the Indo – Pak Context ” shall be brief and pointed. I shall make a few salient points, leaving the nitty gritty for discussion, in the interactive session that will follow. I may add that what I present today, is not any institutional position, but merely a personal opinion, albeit one that is steeped quite naturally, in my professional experiences and inclinations. May I also asterisk to the arguments that follow, a few caveats

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Afghanistan: Stability on the Cheap?

Eight winters since the launch of Enduring Freedom, the turmoil in Afghanistan continues. When contrasted with the progress in Iraqi Freedom, the gloom only deepens. Having applied the necessary mid- course corrections to the ‘ wrong war ’ (Iraq), there is hope on the horizon; despite the Obama administration’s shift of gaze and focus to the ‘ right war ’ (Afghanistan) to include a renewed and reworked military thrust, the initiative continues to rest with the Taliban.